Landmark Supreme Court Cases

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Marbury v. Madison (1803)

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This case established the Supreme Court's power of judicial review.

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McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

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The Supreme Court upheld the power of the national government and denied the right of a state to tax the federal bank using the Constitution's Supremacy Clause. The Court's broad interpretation of the Necessary and Proper Clause paved the way for later rulings upholding expansive federal powers.

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Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)

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The Court ruled that Scott was the property of Sanford and, as a slave, was prohibited from suing in court. Chief Justice Taney gave his opinion that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional. The decision added to sectionalism between North and South that would lead to the Civil War.

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Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

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Legalized segregation in publicly owned facilities on the basis of "separate but equal."

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Korematsu v. United States (1944)

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The internment of Japanese Americans during WWII does not violate the 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause (receives strict scrutiny, but national security is considered a sufficient reason to justify the racial discrimination).

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Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

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The Supreme Court overruled Plessy v. Ferguson, declared that racially segregated facilities are inherently unequal, and ordered all public schools to be desegregated.

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Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

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Established the exclusionary rule: illegally obtained evidence cannot be used in court.

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Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

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Extends to the defendant the right to counsel in all state and federal criminal trials, regardless of their ability to pay.

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Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

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The 5th Amendment self-incrimination clause requires government agents to warn suspects of their right to remain silent and/or contact an attorney before questioning them when they are in custody. Statements made without Miranda rights are inadmissible in court (similar to the exclusionary rule for evidence).

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United States v. Nixon (1974)

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The 1974 case in which the Supreme Court unanimously held that the doctrine of executive privilege was implicit in the Constitution, but could not be extended to protect documents relevant to criminal prosecutions.